Two Oxford students have been suspended after admitting to gaining unauthorized access to the university's IT network. Patrick Foster, 20, and Roger Waite, 21, claimed they had carried out the hack to expose security flaws. But at a disciplinary hearing Friday, it was decided that both students should be "rusticated," or suspended--Foster until May 2005 and Waite until January 2005.

The pair's actions came to light in May, when they wrote an article for The Oxford Student, a university newspaper, detailing their activities. They warned that using tools found through Google they had managed to view live CCTV footage, access information about the computer use of individual students and see their e-mail passwords.

The Oxford University proctors, who investigated the incident, reportedly have recommended that fines should be imposed. However, the panel of three Oxford fellows who conducted Friday's heading at the university's Court of Summary Jurisdiction decided to suspend the two students for what they deemed an attack on the university. Foster, who is now the editor of The Oxford Student, has reportedly said that both he and Waite plan to appeal.